We may become irrelevant if we don't cope with technology: PM

New Delhi, May 10: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday stressed the need for technology in every aspect of life. He said if we don't cope with new advancement in technology, we may become irrelevant.

Launching SC's Integrated Case Management System, he said unfortunately for some people, the meaning of technology was limited to use of good hardware. “Problem is absence of mind set not lack of budget or technology,” he said, adding use of technology in judiciary would improve its efficiency.

“E-governance is effective, economic and environment friendly. Our challenge is how to bring it in every aspect of our life. If one becomes paperless, one saves lot of energy as one A 4 size paper consumes 10 litres of water,” Modi said.

He said after domentisation decision on November 8 last, it was realised that printing currency notes, keeping them safely and transporting those to ATMs required crores of rupees. “One can use paperless currency with help from technology and help in reducing such wasteful expenditure and empower the poor,” he said.

The Prime Minister said that Information Technology+ Indian Talent= India Tomorrow.

He also said his appeal for leaving subsidy for LPG cylinder motivated 1.20 cr people to come forward for it. The money thus saved helped in undertaking schemes for the poor. Though the Congress party in 2014 made raising subsidised cylinder from 9 to 12 as poll plank in 2014, he recalled.

Modi also called upon the lawyers to help in rendering 'pro bono' service to poor litigants. He lauded the judges for taking steps in hearing cases during vacations.

Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said as many as 16740 district courts are now e-covered while 7 crore judgements are online. He said under the Digital India programme 28 crore bank accounts are now Aadhaar linked, which helped in saving RS 50,000 crore from being pocketed by middle men.

Chief Justice of India J S Khehar said the Integrated Case Management System is the biggest leap in judicial system under which the litigants and lawyers can get all case related documents online.

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Average age of school children picking up drugs, smoking habit in 10 Indian cities around 13 years!

News Network

December 13,2025

New Delhi: School-going children are picking up drug and smoking habits and engaging in consumption of alcohol, with the average age of introduction to such harmful substances found to be around 13 years, suggesting a need for earlier interventions as early as primary school, a multi-city survey by AIIMS-Delhi said.

The findings also showed substance use increased in higher grades, with grade XI/XII students two times more likely to report use of substances when compared with grade VIII students. This emphasised the importance of continued prevention and intervention through middle and high school.

The study led by Dr Anju Dhawan of AIIMS's National Drug Dependence Treatment Centre, published in the National Medical Journal of India this month, looks at adolescent substance use across diverse regions.

The survey included 5,920 students from classes 8, 9, 11 and 12 in urban government, private and rural schools across 10 cities -- Bengaluru, Chandigarh, Delhi, Dibrugarh, Hyderabad, Imphal, Jammu, Lucknow, Mumbai, and Ranchi. The data were collected between May 2018 and June 2019.

The average age of initiation for any substance was 12.9 (2.8) years. It was lowest for inhalants (11.3 years) followed by heroin (12.3 years) and opioid pharmaceuticals (without prescription; 12.5 years).

Overall, 15.1 per cent of participants reported lifetime use, 10.3 per cent reported past year use, and 7.2 per cent reported use in the past month of any substance, the study found.

The most common substances used in the past year, after tobacco (4 per cent) and alcohol (3.8 per cent), were opioids (2.8 per cent), followed by cannabis (2 per cent) and inhalants (1.9 per cent). Use of non-prescribed pharmaceutical opioids was most common among opioid users (90.2 per cent).

On being asked, 'Do you think this substance is easily available for a person of your age' separately for each substance category, nearly half the students (46.3 per cent) endorsed that tobacco products and more than one-third of the students (36.5 per cent) agreed that a person of their age can easily procure alcohol products.

Similarly, for Bhang (21.9 per cent), ganja/charas (16.1 per cent), inhalants (15.2 per cent), sedatives (13.7 per cent), opium and heroin (10 per cent each), the students endorsed that these can be easily procured.

About 95 per cent of the children, irrespective of their grade, agreed with the statement that 'drug use is harmful'.

The rates of substance use (any) among boys were significantly higher than those of girls for substance use (ever), use in the past year and use in the past 30 days. Compared to grade VIII students, grade IX students were more likely, and grade XI/XII students were twice as likely to have used any substance (ever).

The likelihood of past-year use of any substance was also higher for grade IX students and for grade XI/XII students as compared to grade VIII students.

About 40 per cent of students mentioned that they had a family member who used tobacco or alcohol each. The use of cannabis (any product) and opioid (any product) by a family member was reported by 8.2 per cent and 3.9 per cent of students, respectively, while the use of other substances, such as inhalants/sedatives by family was 2-3 per cent, the study found.

A relatively smaller percentage of students reported use of tobacco or alcohol among peers as compared to among family members, while a higher percentage reported inhalants, sedatives, cannabis or opioid use among peers.

Children using substances (past year) compared to non-users reported significantly higher any substance use by their family members and peers.

There were 25.7 per cent students who replied 'yes' to the question 'conflicts/fights often occur in your family'. Most students also replied affirmatively to 'family members are aware of how their time is being spent' and 'damily members are aware of with whom they spend their time'.

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